Declan O’Rourke: Chronicles of the Great Irish Famine

Declan O’Rourke is a critically-acclaimed singer and songwriter from Dublin who frequently tours in Europe, America and Australia. In 2013, O’Rourke released his third studio album Mag Pai Zai, which garnered accolades from such national media outlets as The Wall Street Journal, American Songwriter, NPR’s World Café, USA Today, and Mountain Stage. Following that, he released In Full Colour, a collection of fifteen brand new recordings of musical treasures from across his career, newly backed by a full 50-piece orchestra. In 2017, after 15 years of work, he released Chronicles of the Great Irish Famine, pairing the best of traditional Irish music and the heart of modern song-writing to present extraordinary stories from the most dynamic period in Ireland’s history.

Born in Paris, France, Floriane Blancke is a harpist, fiddler, pianist and vocalist who has been embraced into Irish traditional music circles over the past numbers of years. She studied classical music for 10 years in the Conservatoire of Bordeaux before spending a few years studying jazz and world music in the C.I.A.M Jazz School. After moving to Ireland from France to pursue a full-time career in traditional music in 2006, Floriane is now recognized as a skilled harpist and has performed with luminaries such as Sharon Shannon, Dermot Byrne, Frankie Gavin, the RTE Concert Orchestra, Steve Cooney, and Paddy Keenan.

In 2012, Floriane and Dermot Byrne released their first award-winning, eponymous duet album Dermot Byrne and Floriane Blancke. While for the most part, Floriane’s collaborations are traditional, she has shown her versatility in sharing the stage with contemporary artists such as Shane McGowan of the Pogues, singer songwriter Declan O'Rourke, and the world renowned vocalist Patti Smith. Floriane has recently released her first solo album Kaleidoscope and she’s currently touring with Declan O'Rourke.

Dermot Byrne hails from the Inishowen peninsula and was awarded the TG4’s Traditional Musician of the Year 2013. As well as his mastery of the Donegal style and repertoire, Dermot can turn to other styles and traditions such as French musette or South American choro music. He was a member of Altan from 1994 to 2013, and has collaborated with Seamus and Manus McGuire, Sharon Shannon, The Stunning, the late jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli, and others. His eponymous solo recording, reissued recently, received great critical acclaim.

Rob Calder was born and raised in Bloomington, Indiana, and moved to NYC with his wife Lisa and two cats. He has enjoyed a strong relationship with brilliant NYC singers including Michael Brunnock and Colin Smith, and also producers Kieran Kelly and Ken Lewis, and has toured with the likes of Ari, Angus & Julia Stone, Passenger, and Declan O’Rourke. Recently, he broadened his relationship to producer working with Ari and other artists.

Hailing from Cork Ireland, Caitríona's first introduction to percussion was in the Ballincollig Concert Band at the age of four when she was given an egg shaker. Now Dublin based, Caitríona performs regularly with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. She is a member of the Wexford Festival Opera Orchestra and of Bangers and Crash (a collective of top freelance percussionists in Dublin). She is currently the percussionist for world renowned ensemble Celtic Woman.

Caitríona is also a busy drummer. Recent artists she has performed with include Declan O'Rourke, Hayley Westenra and Rebecca Storm. She has performed a host of musicals, one of which was the acclaimed Alice in Funderland premiered in the The Abbey Theatre.

As an educator she has worked in the outreach departments of The National Concert Hall, Wexford Opera Festival, and for Classical Kids. She also facilitated percussion sectionals and mentored in the Irish Youth Wind Ensemble.

Caitríona holds a Master in Performance, First Class Honours, from the Royal Irish Academy of Music.

At five years of age, Chris Herzberger began a classical violin soloist education; his main influence and mentor for many years was acclaimed German Violinist Prof. Dr. Max-Ludwig Grube. With a growing interest in Folk/Country and improvised Music, Chris took Workshops in the US and Germany with Mark O’Connor, Darol Anger, Mark Wood, and Gregor Huebner.

With about 200 concerts per year as a featured soloist for numerous artists, Chris is a sought after live player. He has also contributed to 50 studio albums as a session/recording musician. 

Paul Mulligan may be a new name to many, but to some—such as American songwriting legend John Prine and Nashville producer Jim Rooney—he is already a highly regarded songwriter. His debut album Strong Friend invites comparison with the best, containing songs which are lyrical diamonds that cut with the precision of a scalpel to the heart of the matter. The music may be described as contemporary folk seasoned with his own native tradition together with American alternative country.

Paul was born in Dublin and grew up in Kells Co. Meath. He moved to Galway in 1996 where he set up the Audiomonkey recording studio and record label. He has been working behind the scenes in the music business there since. His music has been recorded by Irish singers Eleanor Shanley, Niamh Parsons, Mary McPartlan, Scottish band Fine Friday, and by California-based singer Sylvia Herold (Cats and Jammers).

John Sheahan is one of Ireland’s best known musicians. Born in Dublin in 1939, he was a member of The Dubliners from 1964 to 2012. He has played with musicians the world over and has guested on numerous folk, traditional and rock recordings. His own compositions, among them, The Marino Waltz and Autumn in Paris, have become essential elements of the Irish musical repertoire. Over the years, he has been in demand as a studio musician, and has contributed to the recordings of such artists as Kate Bush, Rod Stewart, Dolly Parton, Terence Trent D'Arby, and The André Rieu Orchestra. 

In 2013 he was conferred with an honorary doctorate in music from Trinity College, Dublin.  In 2014 the television documentary John Sheahan – A Dubliner received two IFTA awards. In 2015, his debut collection of poems and lyrics 'Fiddle Dreams' was published by Dedalus Press.

A native of Co. Armagh, uilleann piper and whistle player Cillian Vallely grew up in a renowned traditional Irish music family.  His parents Brian and Eithne Vallely founded the legendary Armagh Pipers’ Club, an organization that has fostered the revival of traditional music in the north of Ireland for over fifty years.  Since 1999, he has been touring with the acclaimed traditional band Lúnasa and in recent years, he has played and recorded with artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Natalie Merchant, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Tim O’Brien, and Riverdance, in addition to recording as a guest on over 70 albums.